From Mad in the UK: Lara is 17 and severely “anorexic.” She is a part of me that has used food to regulate herself, to control herself, and to control (but also show) her anger. Anger over years and years of abuse. In long periods of my life, Lara has been the one who has both threatened our (my) existence, and saved us (me) from other kinds of harm or “just” saved us (me) from overwhelm and post traumatic stress. Anorexia is scary to the onlooker, because it is seemingly so destructive, and yet it is often a way to fight for one’s life. As long as there is any form of anger in a person, they are fighting to survive, no matter how that anger comes out, even if it comes out in self-destructive ways. And for survivors of sexual abuse, that anger often, at least partly, comes out as what is called “anorexia,” as well as other kinds of “eating disorders.”
Read the full article here.
